Spells & Starfire

Thank you for the tags, @optimisticgrey, @c-e-p5315, and @unovafarm I am still in a very rough draft phase of the next chapter of To Err Divine. Here's a little song from Gale for this chapter: We're off to find a book to beat the odds! We're off to find a book to make us gods! Wren: "Wait, we're what...?" The theme for this chapter is Wren's downward emotional slide as she moves from focused and all business as they navigate a tower -> confused and worried as Gale tells her of his amazing plan -> absolutely done with all wizards everywhere as Elminster invites Gale for a private chat with Mystra and Gale accepts. Don't worry, everything will get even worse in the next chapter.

Remembering Rolan's warning, Wren rummaged in her pack and drew out two elixirs. "These will let us see what's hidden," she said to Gale, who was crouched near the floor examining a series of vents. "Excellent," he said. "I know I give you grief sometimes for your tendency to hoard, but it truly does come in handy." "Yes," she said dryly. "Not all of us spend our days in one of the largest cities in Faerûn, where everything is easily at hand when you want it." She had learned decades ago that anything useful should be kept if it could be, even if obtaining it meant picking a corpse's pockets. "Point taken," he said good-naturedly. He drank the elixir; she drank hers. The room shifted. Objects and contraptions all around them sprang into being, limned in the mistiness that marked the elixir's work. The hidden world of the tower was suddenly made visible, humming with purpose. "Those floor vents are enchanted with Cloudkill," Gale said, straightening. "Triggered by some trap, though I can't see any mechanism from here, visible or invisible." Wren completed her own circuit of the room. "The devices along the walls are arcane cannons," she said, nodding toward several squat mechanical constructions. "I can't tell what activates them either. Movement doesn't seem to be the trigger, thankfully. Perhaps they’re triggered by touching or taking something." The walls and shelves were crowded with chests and cases holding scrolls, artifacts, and objects whose purposes she couldn't guess at a glance. She saw Gale drifting toward the nearest display case, his curiosity pulling him sideways from their purpose. "Leave it," she said. "Any of it could set off the defenses. We need to find the vault entrance." He stopped, and the mention of the vault snapped his attention back to the task. They continued their search together, now looking specifically for anything that might mark an entrance. "Wren, look here. These pillars." Gale crossed to the nearest one. "There are five of them, spaced around the room. They appeared unmarked at first, but there are plaques, see?" He pointed to the front of the nearest pillar, where text shimmered in that same hazy outline. "'Below,' it says. And there’s a button on top." His hand was already drifting toward it. "Wait." Her voice came out sharp; his hand froze. "Don't touch anything yet. Let's look at all of them first." He drew his hand back. "Yes. Good idea," he said. The pillars, they quickly determined, fell into two categories: those that would transport you somewhere in the tower, and those that were decoys rigged to activate the security measures. The final pillar they examined was labeled Vault. Gale's hand reached out at once, and Wren caught his wrist. "It might be a bluff. Let me check it first." "No," he said, firmly enough that there was no point arguing. "You aren't going to be a sacrificial lamb. I'll investigate it." He studied the pillar closely, running his gaze over every surface. "There's a transportation sigil inside. I can see the structure of it clearly. Nothing else. I believe it's safe." Wren conducted her own inspection and reached the same conclusion. "All right," she said. "But I should go first. We don't know what's waiting on the other side." "No." His eyes were dark and resolved, and through the tadpole she could feel that he had made up his mind and would not be shifted. "We are here because of me. I take the risks this time." She stepped back, watching him, her mind already filling in possibilities: guardian constructs, pressure plates, a room that was simply a kill box. Gale reached forward, pressed the button, and vanished. The space where he had been standing was suddenly very empty. She lunged for the button and slammed her hand against it. Darkness swallowed her, and then there was a brief, disorienting pressure. She stumbled out into the vault, already scanning the room for Gale.

Just Raphael trying his hardest to be hard at work.

(Have you ever seen someone who can live forever try to not procrastinate?)

Tagged by @gortashsrighthand and @perpetualmaladaptivedaydream )you're both reverse tagged) for a game I can always play - except for times I just fail everything, have zero inspiration and want to hide for the rest of my life. Not now.

I've started seriously playing with black and white. So far pairs haven't worked too well, but I'm quite pleased with some solo portraits. Posted solo Halsin earlier, so here is him and Ethery together, and Ethery solo.

Gentle tags for @optimisticgrey @rdekarios @aristenfromwarsaw @missfortunetherogue @cursed-nyxan @ixiagrey @deianestormborn @litsenn @bladesingerlily and everyone who wants to play😃

@wild-surge tagged me in a new OC redesign prompt (check out their incredible post here) - thank you so much!

Back into folklore we go and looking at the fae; fairies and gnomes, a humble bridge troll maybe? Redcaps and gremlins or a fearsome nuckelavee? Mythology of any given country or maybe inspiration from another media? A beautiful ruler of their own court who traps people that can't help for but a taste of the delicious food presented? Or maybe a feystolen child? A changeling pretending to be a human? A witch in the disguise of a beautiful maiden living in her hut that walks on hen legs?

I decided to give Seraphina some fairy wings and make her look a little creepier than usual... because fairies can be mischievous little things! (Wild magic must make Fairy Phina quite unpredictable! 🤣)

Fun fact that I just discovered, in Scottish Gaelic fairies are called Na daoine sìthe (pronounced: Nuh Duh-nya She-huh), which translates to ‘the peaceful people’... not necessarily because they are peaceful, but because staying respectful toward them is about your best chance to not have them play mischief on you 🫵 So you gotta be nice to Fairy Phina, just saying 😉

@wild-surge tagged me in a new OC redesign prompt (check out their incredible post here) - thank you so much!

Back into folklore we go and looking at the fae; fairies and gnomes, a humble bridge troll maybe? Redcaps and gremlins or a fearsome nuckelavee? Mythology of any given country or maybe inspiration from another media? A beautiful ruler of their own court who traps people that can't help for but a taste of the delicious food presented? Or maybe a feystolen child? A changeling pretending to be a human? A witch in the disguise of a beautiful maiden living in her hut that walks on hen legs?

I decided to give Seraphina some fairy wings and make her look a little creepier than usual... because fairies can be mischievous little things! (Wild magic must make Fairy Phina quite unpredictable! 🤣)

Fun fact that I just discovered, in Scottish Gaelic fairies are called Na daoine sìthe (pronounced: Nuh Duh-nya She-huh), which translates to ‘the peaceful people’... not necessarily because they are peaceful, but because staying respectful toward them is about your best chance to not have them play mischief on you 🫵 So you gotta be nice to Fairy Phina, just saying 😉

Woop woop, thank you, @kt-catt! 🖤

*rubs hands together like a greedy little fly*

(I really need new, neutral dividers)

What’s a small BG3 detail that you always notice and love?

Halsin's pipe. The lovingly crafted details throughout the Grove. The wonderfully bitchy banter of NPCs you only hear if you stop and listen. The attention to detail woven through every corner of the game. The single, unbitten apple sitting on the Risen Road.....

Not the grand revelations or world-ending stakes, but the tiny details that make the world feel lived in. The moments that tell stories not relevant to the main plot. The objects, conversations, and little pieces of environmental storytelling that reward curiosity and make Faerûn feel real.

What’s one piece of reference material you’re currently obsessed with?

Maphra's voice (which also serves as Celeste's voice claim). I am not an experienced singer and my guitar skills are best described as "enthusiastic." But one of the unexpected joys of writing Celeste has been learning how singing actually feels inside the body.

It has become a bit of an art study all on its own. And as a delightful side effect, I get to spend hours listening to absolutely beautiful music while convincing myself it is research.....

Share a snippet or visual from your current project that you’re quietly proud of.

Young Celeste in all her blood glory.

What’s something you’re looking forward to creating or finishing soon?

Some personal projects outside of fandom should be reaching the finish line relatively soon, which is both exciting and mildly terrifying.

The memoir is going to take forever. Not because I lack motivation, but because it keeps growing. Every time I think I have found the shape of the story, another thread appears that deserves exploring, another question needs answering, another piece of Celeste's life demands attention.

Which is, admittedly, a rather fitting problem for a memoir spanning the life of a Bhaalspawn. 😁

What’s a fun or silly tradition you have with your OCs/Tavs?

Usually, when I sit down to write (not just draft), I murmur ,"okay, girl, come now. Behave." And then smirk a little. She never does.

What’s a BG3 NPC you’d love to see in a completely different outfit or setting?

Dammon. Always Dammon.

What is a BG3 collab project that you would want to do?

I have a zine idea I am going to pitch to a friend in a few months, to see if they are down for it (and we both have the capacity).

What’s a tiny headcanon or detail you’ve added to your Tav/OC that brings you joy?

Honestly, I would not dedicate this much time, energy, and precious brain juice to her if her entire gods-forsaken existence—and her slow, steady descent into absolute madness—did not bring me an unreasonable amount of joy.

At some point, I stopped pretending I was in control of this project.

I am not.

I am merely the unfortunate soul tasked with documenting the life of a deeply complicated woman who keeps making increasingly questionable decisions while I sit in the corner taking notes.

And I adore her for it.

What is something you want your followers to know about you?

I consider myself to be funny and apologize if I am not 😁

Everyone hold the FUCK UP! SHUT THE FUCK UP AND SIT YOUR ASSES DOWN!

My War Domain Cleric of Selûne is HERE!

RHIANNON THE REVERENT

These ideas have spent almost a year living in my head rent free and now that they’ve been brought to life they get to live on your dashboards rent free now too!

I think I'm gonna stop here, because I probably should have already.

Like I said, ridiculously stupid. Also like I said, not without precedent:

How did you come up with your BG3 AUs for your Tavs?

And what do you like more? Your standard BG3 timeline of your Tavs? Or your new AUs?

(While you're at it, why not show a few new VPs or GIFs of it? 😉)

Ooooh, Saulus enters the chat! (Jkjk) But I was so stoked to see you send this ASK over. To be completely honest, a lot of the AUs @thecampjuicebox and I have begun really just happened over Discord chat via silly little discussions. I suppose you could say it all started with a random comment made under one of my Sion posts where I changed his hairstyle to match what it becomes later in the original BG3 universe and joked that he reminded me of some surfer–but then I just had to be extra as always and throw out other random ideas:

But what if he also sold drugs? What if he had an Australia accent? What if he was also a conservationalist?

From there, Shae and I just continued having more conversations, throwing our blorbos into other random worlds. We already have fifteen–yes, you read that right–FIFTEEN RP channels going. So why not be crazy with it and add on some more? I think my favorite part about that is if creativity doesn't spark for one RP channel, there are endless possibilities that motivate a response for another, if not our li'l random OC discussion channel where we just share random images, songs, inspirational things that remind us of these characters.

I cannot stress enough how difficult it is to answer whether I like the standard vs. AU versions of our blorbos. I think I like both equally, and some more than others during different cycles. Sometimes I'm feeling like modern writing, other times I want to dig back into fantasy territory. Lately, the idea of an 1800s Midwestern setting is sounding pretty fun. My favorite switches up the same way my cravings for different foods change. Sometimes I want chocolate ice cream, and sometimes I want an orange Creamsicle. Neither is better than the other; it's simply that I acquire a taste for them more on different days.

I don't have very much new content to share as far as photos and GIFs go because, unfortunately, my laptop is not made to run BG3, and yet I kind of force it to anyway. Now that the weather is 90° here, it is almost impossible to get much of anything going on it without the game freezing anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes at a time before I can even snap a photo in the photomode. I have been trying to break up sharing any images I do manage to take for the purpose of having some form of content, but that has been so difficult lately.

Here are a couple more pics that I've withheld from posting, special just for you!

More College AU Eryndor playing with modern-ish looking fits:

And some Midwestern AU, sinful Father Azalaïs:

Happy Friday!! Thank you my fellow friends - @alliskit, @kt-catt @perpetualmaladaptivedaydream, @helyanwe4608, @nw39, @rdekarios, @the-font-bandit, @mellybaggins @bloodsol94 - for the tags! I was vacationing in my favorite place for inspiration 🇮🇸 so, I got very behind on my story! But I'm back!! Below is a snip from the latest posted chapter of The Matriarch: The Morena Dekarios Story. - Context: We are back in the present (1492 DR), where Morena is chatting with her ex-boyfriend, High Harper Kyle Reinhart.